Do I Need A Stucco Sealer On My Home? [Video]

There's a simple way to test to see if a stucco sealer is necessary for your next home re-painting project.  We'll get to that in a minute.

But first, why would you need a stucco sealer to begin with?

Your House Is Chalky

Cementitious surfaces such as stucco, concrete block, etc. can often develop a chalky film on them over time.  If you paint directly over that chalk then the paint will only bond to it and not to the surface -- similar to painting over dirt.

You might be asking, well why can't I just pressure wash or hand scrub the surface to remove the chalk.  The answer is that you definitely should do one of the two of those things in preparation for any exterior painting project.  But that will not always solve the chalk problem.  

Many surfaces will continue to chalk despite a proper and thorough surface prep.  In these cases you will need to bond this chalk to the substrate before you apply your paint, and that is where a sealer such as Sherwin-Williams' Loxon Conditioner comes into play.

You Have New Stucco

New stucco (or even a new stucco patch) as well as other new cementitious surfaces require a 30-day cure time before they can be coated because the pH level is too high during that time period.  However, there are a handful of good stucco sealers that will allow you apply them directly over uncured surfaces and paint the areas right away.

Don't try this with a regular primer or paint.

Your House Painter Wants To Sell You Something You Don't Need

The final reason why a painting contractor or a paint retailer might tell you that you need a stucco sealer is that it's just become "customary" to use it in the area you live.  We see this a lot in coastal areas like Florida where it has simply become common practice for everyone to recommend a sealer with every repaint project whether you actually need one or not.

Unless you fall into one of the two categories I listed above You Don't Need A Sealer On Your Home...Period.

Paint retailers are all too happy to sell them to you because that means more money in their pocket.

Painting contractors will be glad to apply them for a few different reasons:

1. They can skimp on the surface prep which allows them to charge a lower price to get the work.  Instead of properly cleaning your home they can just give it a quick rinse and slap on a coat of sealer followed by the topcoat(s) and be done quickly.  But it doesn't benefit you because the life of your paint job is in the surface prep. 
2. They might even tell you that you don't need two coats of your topcoat if they apply the sealer, but that's also just a bunch of nonsense that helps them to give you a lower price.
3. Playing on the fact that it's become a "customary" practice they can convince you that you need this additional coat so they can justify a higher price for their work, but it may be completely unnecessary.

How Do You Know If You Need A Stucco Sealer?

There's a very simple way to tell if your house is chalky and needs a sealer.  Rather than explain it myself I'll let one of our estimators, Justin, show you in the video below.

If you would like some assistance with your stucco painting project please give us a call at (813) 570-8800, visit our Contact Us page, or click on the button below to request your free, no-obligation consultation and quote.